Hot Pepper Fudge

Ack! What is it?

It's fudge, really it is!

I just couldn't wait until it was nice and hard to slice off a nice piece for a picture.

The vultures were circling.

Is that fudge?

Is it done yet?

It looks done to me!

You've got to go to the store?

Okay, yeah, we'll watch, it . . . we'll watch it all right.

I was in a desperate situation! I had to get a picture NOW!

So, this . . .

 . . . is as good as it gets!

Besides, its chocolate, it doesn't have to look good!

Look at what I got at the store! Beautiful, red, jalapeno peppers.

I took out the seeds and ribs and chopped them up. You can leave the seeds and ribs in if you want to torture the chocolate lover in your life. Or if you wish to pleased the heat lover in your life. But seriously, it's hot enough just like it is!

Ah look at the itty bitty pan! I put the peppers in with some plain old white table sugar. About equal parts of each!

Now enough water to get everything mixed together.

Stir it together and turn on the heat!

It's all bubbly! The water is there to get everything moving and to transfer heat effectively to the sugar and peppers. It's going to boil off rather quickly. Give it the occasional stir!

Optional step. Taste it . . . and scream . . . and put an ice cube on your tongue . . . 'cause it's boiling hot and full of capsicin. Actually, I did let it cool before I tasted it and I still screamed and put an ice cube on my tongue because it was so, so, so, spicy!

It's done as soon as the juices get syrupy. I do have to say that jalapenos have more gel power than anything else I've ever cooked. I may have to make some spicy jams this summer! Now set this aside to cool and gather your super secret, super simple, fudge making ingredients.

Sweetened condensed milk. The more I use this the more I love it!

Your favorite chocolate chips. Or whatever was on sale.

Now do you have your double boiler ready? Your candy thermometer? Gloves? Aprons?

Put them away!

Put your chips into a microwave safe dish.

Pour the sweetened condensed milk on.

Now I was making this for Cinco de Mayo so I threw a little cinnamon in. Why do I connect cinnamon and chocolate and Mexico? Well because Mexican Hot Chocolate always has cinnamon in it! Besides it tastes good and meshes well with the jalapenos!

Throw in a touch of vanilla! Vanilla is from the Americas after all! Along with the chocolate and the hot peppers. Besides my palate demands vanilla with my chocolate!

Now for some of those sweet spicy jalapenos!

Now mix it up a little!

Now throw it all in the Queen of the Kitchen, your microwave.

Mix it up until the chocolate is all melted!

Then pour it in an 8X8 pan. I lined a glass dish with plastic wrap to make it easier to remove later. Now realize that this isn't terribly hot stuff. Chocolate melts at body temperature after all! So I'm not worried about pouring it on the plastic wrap. Now in 30 years if the family is all dying of cancer, talk to me again.

Now for a little salty bite . . .

They might of been prettier on the inside but you know I like sprinkles! Plus, I wanted the child who hates nuts to be able to pick them off. AND I also like to make the addition of nuts to any dish obvious for any people with allergies.

Do you see the little jewel like nuggets of jalapeno? This is a dense, chewy, creamy, chocolaty fudge. The jalapeno and cinnamon add a new spicy aroma and kick to it. The nuts are the crunchy, salty counterpoint.

It'll get your chocolate groove on!

Hot Pepper Fudge

2 jalapeno peppers, seeded and minced
3 Tbsp of sugar
2 Tbsp of water
12 oz of semi-sweet chocolate chips
14 oz can of sweetened condensed milk
1/2 tsp cinnamon (optional)

1/4 cup of salted, roasted, peanuts for garnish

Place jalapenos in a small pan with sugar and water. Boil until syrupy 3-5 minutes. Allow to cool.

Mix jalapenos (as much as you like) with remaining ingredients in microwave safe container. Microwave on high for 1 minute. Stir vigorously. If chips aren't melted yet put them back in microwave for 15-30 seconds and stir again. Repeat until you have a pretty smooth mixture. Note: Do not overheat the chocolate, it can become lumpy!

Pour into 8X8 pan and sprinkle with nuts. Allow to cool. The refrigerator would be fine if it's a hot day.

Fajitas!

Happy Nueve de Mayo!

Okay, yeah, I wrote this post and then completely forgot to publish it. It's been that kind of week! So much stuff to do so little time.

Just wait till you have children in elementary school and your entire month of May becomes a hectic schedule of activities that involve "making memories" for your children. Field Day, field trips, recognition ceremonies, teacher appreciation activities, choir concerts, band concerts, orchestra concerts, talent shows, and picnics are all I'm doing. But remember to not offend your family, friends and coworkers by not showing up to their or their children's graduation party, honor ceremony, deployment party, or welcome home gathering.

Oh and baseball and soccer . . . and . . . church . . . we haven't even mentioned church!

Repeat after me. "My name is Mud. My name is Mud. My name is Mud."

Can you really plan and schedule and record "memories?" I have lovely memories from childhood. Like the time my mother knocked her ice tea over and it fell in her purse. We teased her about having ice tea in her purse for 25 years! Seriously, whenever we were out and anybody was thirsty we'd say "Ask Mom, she's got tea in her purse!"

Anyway, lets cook something simple and satisfying today okay? It's a hot week so let's break out the grill and make some steak fajitas! As Speedy Gonzales used to say "Undele! Undele! Arriba! Arriba!"

I love a good steak fajita don't you? I hardly ever make them though unless we're camping.

What? You don't make fajitas when you're camping?

You gotta bring a little civilization into it people!

Besides, you cook everything on the grill for fajitas so it's perfect camping food. Isn't it?

Let's get grilling!

So, sirloin was on sale. It's usually a sort of tough steak but it'll be perfect for our fajitas.

See how the muscle goes across the meat? When I cut up the steak I can cut it across the grain. That will make for tender bites. Flank steak is also wonderful for this but it's so pricey! Save the flank for guests.

Yes, I'm opening up a packet of taco seasoning. You don't expect me to take the spice cabinet camping do you?

You want to mix it with a couple of tablespoons of olive oil.

The juice of half a lime will help tenderize the meat too! Then stir it all together into a thick paste.

I like to poke the steak with a fork a little first. To help the marinade get in . . . and it breaks up the fibers a little too.

Pour it on and rub it in! Let it sit for 30 minutes or so. This is a good time to light the charcoal!

Now for some vegetables! I like bell pepper. Red is delicious but green will do too!

Green onions are delightful when grilled! Red onion is more traditional though. I say use what you've got!

A little vegetable oil, salt and pepper is all the veggies need. The oil helps them not stick to the grill. It also attracts the flames.

Coals are ready! Let's get the onions going. I tend to do my vegetables first because my family likes them really tender. When they start to get black marks move them to the cooler side of the grill. They'll steam a little over there.

Now for some peppers. I've been throwing some jalapenos on lately. My husband loves the heat! Leave them until they start to get beautiful black marks.

Put the onions on a plate. Move the peppers to the cool side of the grill. Throw the meat on! I don't wipe it off or anything. The spice rub turns delicious on the grill!

Flip them over! How done do you like your steaks? Lean meat like this really prefers medium or medium-rare. I cooked them about 3 minutes a side over some serious heat.

Let the meat rest for 5-6 minutes while you load up the table with sour cream, cheese, some black bean salad etc. Then slice it up. It's perfect! It's a miracle!

With beans and rice you've got a colorful meal.

The meat was so tender and beefy! The spice paste adds that bit of salty, citrusy, cuminy, flavor that makes it latin but lets the steak stand out as the star. The vegetable's have a lovely sweetness and char to them that makes everything complete! It's a fiesta for your mouth!

Steak Fajitas

1 1/2 lb sirloin or flank steak
1 1 oz. packet taco seasoning
2 Tbsp. olive oil
juice from 1/2 a lime
1 bell pepper, quartered and seeds removed
1 big bunch of green onions, roots and tops trimmed
1 Tbsp. vegetable oil
salt and pepper

garnish
shredded cheese
salsa
cilantro
sour cream


Mix taco seasoning, lime juice and olive oil to form a paste. Poke steak with a fork and spread spice paste over meat. Let sit for 30-60 minutes. Dress bell pepper and green onion with vegetable oil and salt and pepper to taste. Grill vegetables over high heat until lightly charred. Remove. Grill steak 3-5 minutes per side. Let steak rest 5-6 minutes before slicing across the grain. Serve on warm tortillas.

The good Huswifes Handmaide for the Kitchin. London 1594.

So, I've been a little bored with cooking lately . . .

Been feeling more . . .

Than . . .

I've got the energy for . . .

Not so much for . . .

I've been reading some period novels lately and I always find it interesting to hear about meals. So I've been playing around with some downloadable ebooks and thought I'd check out some old cookbooks. They give me perspective!

Here was a recipe for food for a sick person from 1594

To boyle Mutton for a sicke bodie.

PUt your Mutton into a pipkin, seeth it,
and scum it cleane, and put thereto a crust
of bread, Fennell roots, Parsly roots, corrans,
great Raisons (the stones taken out) and
hearbs, according [<-iag] as the patient is[.] If they be
cold, hot hearbs may be borne: if they be hot,
cold hearbs be best, as Endiue, Sinamon,
Uiolet leaues, and some Sorrell: let them boyle
together. Then put in Prunes, and a verie litle
salt. This is broth for a sicke bodie.

Here's my best translation

Put your mutton in a dutch oven.
Bring it to a simmer and skim the scum off the top.
Add a slice of bread (I assume for thickening), fennel,
the root of parsley, currents?, and some large raisins
you've taken the pits out of. Add herbs based on what
the patient is sick with. If the sick person is cold and
clammy add seasonings that will warm them to the pot.
If the person is suffering from a fever add seasonings
that will cool them. Some good examples are endive,
cinnamon, violet leaves and sorrell. Then boil. Add prunes
and a little salt. This is broth for a sick person.

No wonder life expectancy was so short!

The Land of Pork and Chocolate . . .

Do you remember me talking about the best day ever?

How I was planning on it?

It happened!

I spent the whole day with my Dear One!

We went to the school assembly and saw Darling Daughter honored and Guitar Boy help with a skit.

Then we went to Kansas City's beer epicenter, Boulevard Brewery! I got to eat a delicious meal made by Chef's Colby & Megan Garrelts, of Bluestem in Kansas City.

Want to know what we ate?  Here it is!

I was thinking this dairy needed to rethink their name . . .

Then I didn't care what their name was!

This cheese had a hint of barnyard that you find in a standard goat cheese. It had been whipped to a fluffy lightness that was incredible. There was a beautiful hint of lemon to it. There's a little pocket of Balsamic must. I gather it's a mix of balsamic vinegar and the grapes used to create the vinegar in the first place. It had a beautiful sweet tanginess that made the cheese incredible tasting. My husband said the cheese almost took on a texture like finely pureed parsnips or potatoes. It did have very satisfying texture. The pea and asparagus salad was crisp, tender and delightful next to the rich cheese.

The Tank 7 beer is one of the Boulevard Smokestack series. My husband had one in the tasting room! It's on the left. It is a beautiful golden color. Very interesting in that you taste the bitter hops at first then the finish is sweet and light! This is a very smooth beer that can sneak up and spank you with it's 8% alcohol content.

Second Course! The N/A notifies us that the beer has no label. It's still in development. Let me tell it's developing LOVELY!

Oh! Oh! Oh! This was delicious! It's pork shoulder cooked for 24 hours in an immersion circulator. So the meat gets beautifully tender and the fat just melts as soon as it hits your mouth. There was the slightest hint of soy, garlic, ginger, and sesame in this.

The vegetables were incredibly tender too. Knives? Not necessary. Bok choy, mushrooms and won ton noodles simply sauced in the juices from the meat and it's marinade. Why mess with perfection?

The entree was all about tenderness and subtle flavor. The beer was so complex it balanced it completely. Dubbel is a beer they've been working on for quite awhile. This iteration had a hint of celery scent to it. It is flavored with anise, cinnamon and coriander. The overall taste is warm, zesty, and citrusy with a smooth and nutty finish.

Be still my heart.

It's not really a luncheon without a little dessert right?

Goodness gracious!

I'll admit I wasn't particularly excited for this dessert. I'm not a huge fan of pecan pie and while I thought that the float had possibilities I wasn't holding out a great deal of hope.

I was terribly, terribly wrong. This is one of the BEST chocolate desserts I've ever had!

No, I don't think the four beers I've had in the last hour has had any effect on my judgement . . . thanks for your concern

The "tartlet" was a delicious sort of pecan-pie-bar-cookie thing. I think I'll call all my future bar cookies "tartlets." I may have to make some chocolate tartlets tonight. I can imagine it now . . .

Guitar Boy: Mommy, can I have a brownie?

Me: No!

Guitar Boy: What? Why not?

Me: I have no brownies!

Guitar Boy: What are those?

Me: Those are chocolate tartlets! Would you like one?

Guitar Boy: But, . . . Mommy?

Gentle Giant: Shush! She's got that look in her eye!

The pecan tartlet was almost candy like. It was chewy, orangey, with a lovely range of cinnamon and cloves flavors. There was definitely an undercurrent of molasses in it too. The float was pure heaven! The "Old Clarence" is actually Boulevard's Bully Porter barrel-aged for a year like a smokestack type beer would be. It had a deep rich bitterness that made the chocolate become a chocolate symphony in your mouth! Bubbly, cold, bitter, chocolate.

What a lovely day!